Lessons Learned
by A. Lee
Summary: Revised and Complete. Crystal Tokyo and philosophy were not meant to mix.


A/N: This is a revised version of my previously two-chaptered fanfic "Learning a Lesson." I kept the spirit of the old thing, cut out all unnecessary bits (a.k.a. just about everything), and this is the rather plot-less and overly philosophical result.

Small Lady Serenity despised her name. It was cute, for a child. And she had been a child for a long time, so it had been fitting. But she was no longer a child, and thus her name was no longer appropriate. After all, no teenager should suffer the indignity of a name like "Small Lady." Or "Rini," which was worse. Rini brought to mind the image of a young, sweet girl with cotton-candy hair and a pink, heart-shaped wand that was completely useless in battle.

But it wasn't like she could order the senshi, who could destroy worlds without breaking a sweat, to call her Luella (which she thought was a nice, mysterious-sounding name that was filed with dignity), or Selene (who had so much history attached to it, and was so fitting), or Lena (which she just liked, period). So Rini it was, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Except grumble. Which she did. A lot.

The problem is, there wasn't much else for her to do besides complain. (Well, there were the lessons that she kept on ditching, the formal ceremonies she skipped, and the ambassadorial duties she generally bailed out on, but those didn't count. Lessons were useful, but not etiquette lessons. Formal ceremonies she might actually attend, if they weren't tediously boring, rooted in ages-old tradition that nobody even considered changing because it was "how things were done." As for her "ambassadorial duties"? It wasn't like she ever did anything important. Her duties involved entertaining important guests, pouring tea, and then getting kicked out of the room whenever anything important was being discussed.) And no wonder. It wasn't like she had a lot of opportunities to interact with kids her age. Granted, part of it was due to her time-traveling when she was younger. Hard to make friends that way. But part of it was also due to the prevailing distrust citizens of Crystal Tokyo had about royalty.

Oh, they appreciated Neo-Queen Serenity and everything she had done and accepted her as their ruler – but it wasn't like they really had a choice, either. They had their complaints, and they made them known, and they acknowledge all the good Neo-Queen Serenity had done for the world, but nothing could get rid of that deep-seated distrust against an absolute monarch, however compassionate and perfect and considerate she may be.

Anyway. The citizens were constantly disgruntled, and a result was that they rarely let their children anywhere near the Crystal Palace. Rini had thought, the other day, that it would make perfect use to train during her spare time, that she should be able to practice wielding the Silver Imperial Crystal (her eventual inheritance) while she was bored, to make constructive use of her time.

She had suggested this to her senshi, who had agreed that it sounded reasonable. Then, she had suggested it to the senshi (the planetary ones), and they had agreed that it sounded slightly simple. They had brought it up with her mother, who apparently, they told her, disagreed and had vetoed the idea.

"Princess Small Lady Serenity in to see the Queen!" a herald announced as Rini stormed into the room. She hated that name. Her mother was seated on the throne, but casually. The palace was open to neither visitors nor supplicants, it being a feast-day. Everyone had taken off work, and were out in the streets celebrating, no doubt.

"Was there something you wanted, Rini?" Serenity asked.

"Yes," Rini said shortly. "Something to do. Since you won't let me practice wielding the Crystal, won't let me practice using or developing my powers, and won't let me go to sketch places in hazy parts of town to make dubious friends, you must have an alternative activity planned for me."

"First of all, Rini," Neo-Queen Serenity said coolly, "you might want to cut back on the sarcasm. Sarcasm is best applied in the right amounts at the right times. Subtlety is key." Rini suppressed a sigh. Her mother never seemed to tire of lectures, nowadays. "So, I gather you're upset about your lack of interaction with the Silver Crystal," her mother said disapprovingly.

"You think?" Rini wanted to say, but knew when not to push it.

Neo-Queen Serenity sighed, and a weary expression crossed her face, one that startled Rini. Not for the first time, Rini wondered where the carefree teenaged Usagi had disappeared to, and who this Neo-Queen was, that had taken her place.

"Before I begin training you on the mechanics of using the Silver Crystal," Neo-Queen Serenity said (and Rini instantly whooped --- she had convinced her mother!), "you have to sit through a little history lesson. Lecture. Thing." (Rini sighed – history really was not her forte.

Neo-Queen Serenity gestured for Rini to sit, and signaled the herald to let none other into the room until her say-so.

"The story begins back in the Silver Millennium. I was a young, naive, innocent girl who thought myself oh-so-gifted because I had such good friends in the planetary senshi, and such a kind mother, and such a wonderful life. A charmed life. My mother, the Queen, was a great ruler whose people adored her, no matter her decision. Nobody ever complained, ever expressed any discontent of any sort. I had thought it was because my mother was so wise ...

The Imperial Silver Crystal has many names, as you well know. It has been called the Jewel of the Imperium, the ginzuishou, and in more ancient times, it was known as the Illusion Crystal.

"You know and I know that life is not sustainable on the moon, despite our current efforts to restore it. This is due, in part, to Beryl's attack, of course. But the famed Moon Palace of the Silver Millennium and its lush gardens and magnificent scenery was nothing more than an illusion."

"What do you mean?" Rini asked, confused.

"When I first began my lessons, the first my mother taught me was that I was nothing without the Crystal and its illusions. The splendor of the Silver Millennium, the happiness of the people, they were all illusions created by the Crystal."

"That ... that's not possible."

"This is the secret that each Serenity carries with her from generation to generation. The reason my friends adored me was because my mother made it so with her omnipotent Crystal. Without the crystal, I would be no beauty; I would be average in my plainness and that would not do for a princess. So my mother waved her Crystal and all was well. In _her_ world, at least.

"When I learned my first lesson, I shut myself up in my room and cried for weeks."

"But, how does that work?" Rini objected. "How can illusion sustain so much?"

Neo-Queen Serenity hesitated. "The explanation is long and technical," she sighed. "Umm ... basically, it maintains an illusion that I was likable and charismatic, so that my senshi would want to protect me as well as be obligated. It ... persuaded civilians that they enjoyed their life, that there were no hardships.

"Anyways, that was the first thing I learned. The second was that one sometimes must be cruel and ruthless to get the necessary results.

"You see, my story has not ended. The magic of the Crystal is like a drug. Use it too many times and you become addicted. And, of course, the more you use it, the more magic you channel at a time, and the greater risk you run of dying. My mother had been addicted to her Crystal, because of _her_ mother's actions.

"My mother did not wish the same fate upon me. She used the Crystal to maintain a false illusion because that was what she had been taught, but she wanted me to take a different path. My mother taught me that the Crystal's magic is a privilege and not a right. It is and should always be a last resort.

"Now, do you understand why I made that decision?"

"Yes," Rini said slowly, still thinking her mother's words through. She still had many questions, but she knew in her gut that she couldn't ask them. She couldn't ask her mother how much was illusion, how much was not; or whether her use of the Silver Crystal had resulted in addiction.

"Good. Then I have a question for you," Neo-Queen Serenity said. "How will _you_ use the crystal?"

Now that just wasn't fair. She had chosen not to ask her mother the millions of questions on the tip of her tongue, so now she was being interrogated?

"Will you be a kind and just ruler in the eyes of your people because you have been twisting their emotions into happiness? Or will you be the ruler that everyone grumbles about yet begs help from nonetheless, solely for the personal satisfaction that you have done the 'right' thing? One will bring happiness to your people. The other will bring pleasure only to you."

"But you can't think of it like that," Rini objected.

Her mother smiled. "Then how will you think of it?"

"Tampering with their emotions is ... it's like an invasion of privacy. It's wrong!"

"Why?"

Rini was at a loss for words.

"Don't worry too much about it now," Neo-Queen Serenity smiled, getting up and stretching. "You have time before my death, time before your ascension, time to think. Just make sure that whatever your choice is, you can defend it. For you will have to."

--

The Rini of that night was far more subdued than the Rini of that morning, Diana noted. But she didn't ask why. Everyone, or just about everyone, knew that Rini had spent over an hour sequestered with her mother the Neo-Queen. Still, Rini looked as if she were going to spend all night brooding and not go to sleep at all.

Just as Diana was about to casually inquire as to Rini's day, Rini looked up with bright eyes. "I know!" she triumphantly.

"What do you know?" Diana asked warily.

"Nothing," Rini said with a smile. "What did you say my schedule was for tomorrow morning?"

"Etiquette lessons," Diana began.

"No etiquette lessons," Rini said firmly. "We can move the civics classes to tomorrow morning. I want to free up tomorrow afternoon, anyways."

"What for?" Diana asked suspiciously.

"Planning for the future," Rini said, her eyes sparkling.

"What?" Diana asked, confused.

"Never mind," Rini dismissed. "Just go to sleep."

Diana eyed her charge suspiciously before curling up and doing as she said.

Tomorrow ... tomorrow was full of possibiltiies.

Fin.


End file.
